


Too Close For Comfort

by Dance_Elle_Dance



Category: Secret Life of the American Teenager (TV)
Genre: Episode Tag: 2x03, F/M, Friendship, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-06
Updated: 2015-08-06
Packaged: 2018-04-13 06:01:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,305
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4510536
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dance_Elle_Dance/pseuds/Dance_Elle_Dance
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After he had hugged her, she slapped him. And not just because he had violated her personal space - though, she needed comforting at the time - but because his arms around her felt...right. (Originally posted on 7/11/09.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Too Close For Comfort

**Author's Note:**

> Re-post of my first fanfic in the Secret Life fandom. Ben/Adrian all the way. Please enjoy!

Her hand still tingled from where she slapped him.

But first, she had gone after Jack. Because he was an asshole, blaming her for _it_. Maybe what had happened was a result of Adrian making sex look enjoyable, but maybe if he wasn't running around with every girl, Grace wouldn't have felt the need to sleep with him just to keep him. She wasn't ready - Adrian pleaded with her not to do it, but she did.

Then she hit Ricky. Just because.

And last was that poor, lovesick sap Ben Boykewich.

She had slapped him for the hug, which seemed like a ludicrous thing to do at the time. She was distressed and he had comforted her like the kind, caring boy that he was, and it calmed her, being in his lanky, thin arms and smelling some sort of cologne on his shirt. While it comforted her, it also made her feel weak, _like a helpless girl._ She _hated_ that feeling.

Adrian had slapped Ben for hugging her.

Not just for the hug, though.

She slapped him because she _liked_ him embracing her.

The dark haired girl made her way down the hall, flexing her fingers ever so gently, the hallway's lights reflecting off of the clear polish she had coated on them to give them sheen. The palm was slightly red, and she scoffed at it. _Well, no one can say I don't pack a punch…err, slap._

But while she was basking in the glow of her feminine empowerment, she couldn't get the dark haired boy's face out of her mind. The caring look that seemed ever-present in his large, doe-like eyes, that reflected in his every movement was etched in her brain. Adrian could tell he was a genuinely kind person - a bleeding heart, to put it poetically.

Ben wasn't like any of the other guys she'd been with (not that she'd actually been with Ben in that way, but still…). He was genuine, kind, caring, sweet, and cute in an innocent, puppy dog kind of way.

He wasn't like _Ricky._ The eternally sexy boy that she often shared her bed with. Ricky with his pick up lines and his experience. Hard body, and smooth words that reduced her to butter. No, Ben wasn't like him at all.

Nor was he like Jack. The cheating jock. Yeah, Adrian had been one of those girls he cheated on Grace with. But only because he asked and she had no problems with it at the time. That was behind them, and the brunette realized how big of a mistake getting with him was. She'd never do that again, that was for damn sure.

Ben was…completely different from any guy she'd ever encountered.

He was cute - handsome, even. Though that wasn't why he was different. Adrian knew her fare share of handsome guys, but there was something about how he carried himself, how he was so sweet, almost delicate, that made Adrian want him…

She shook her head, waves of thick, dark hair flowing over her shoulders as she did so. How stupid was she to be thinking of that! Ben had Amy and she had Ricky…

But even Adrian had to admit that she knew she wouldn't have Ricky for long. She had seen the way he looked at Amy, when he thought she wasn't paying attention. Amy was even dressing more suggestively, maybe to spite her. Maybe because she thinks she's a "woman" now that she's had a baby. Maybe she's just exploiting her new curves. _But maybe she's trying to get Ricky,_ a voice deep within her suggested.

She growled underneath her breath as the bell for school to start rang. The brunette didn't want to think about Amy or Ricky or the two of them together…but it had been plaguing her mind a lot lately.

She let out a sigh, closed her eyes, and was suddenly met with the image of Ben beneath her lids. "Dammit…" she muttered, cursing herself.

"Adrian…" a kind voice called out to her.

She spun around before setting her dark eyes onto the boy who had said her name, the boy whose face she had just imagined, "Oh. Ben," she greeted dully.

"Listen, I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable…by hugging you…I just - uh, I wanted to help because I knew you were…upset."

Her skeptical look softened and she felt a smile grace her pretty features. She couldn't help it. The way Ben was looking down at his feet, his eyes boring holes into the tops of his converses, and how he was wringing his hands made her think of a child who had done something as bad as busting out a window and was apologizing to their parents.

It also made her think, however reluctantly, _He's cute._

"Hey, look up," she said, more curt than she had intended to. And when he looked up, she softened her gaze considerably more. "Listen, it's okay. I've just had a…bad day," she admitted, walking closer to him.

Ben blinked, obviously not expecting this from _Adrian Lee_ of all people.

"So don't worry about it. No hard feelings." Adrian scoffed. "Besides, _I_ was the one who slapped _you_ ,right? Funny how you're apologizing to me."

Ben laughed. "Well, that is kind of funny…"

"Yeah, see?" Adrian outright grinned as she saw the look of relief cross his face. Relief mixed with a brief tint of happiness. She wondered briefly what that was caused by, and she sighed slightly, knowing it was because of "his Amy."

"So…I'll catch you later, Adrian," Ben said awkwardly. Yet another thing that made him adorable, Adrian realized. His awkwardness. "Maybe you won't slap me next time."

"Maybe you won't hug me," she shot back, not unkindly.

A smile spread across his young features and he laughed in a carefree manner that made Adrian think of the playground when she was younger. The playground and swing sets and slides along with sandboxes and monkey bars. It made her think of the innocence of youth, something Adrian had given up along time ago, and she suddenly found herself wanting it back again.

Ben gave her an stiff little wave as he walked past her to get to his next class.

Adrian returned the gesture with a sultry smirk - one of her famous ones - and a wink. The smirk grew when she saw Ben's cheeks flush the color of a ripe tomato.

She found herself watching the taller boy walk away, his thin hips moving ever-so-slightly beneath the fabric of his jeans. Astutely, she watched as he reached up and ran a hand through his hair, messing it up even further.

She then saw that same hand move down to his cheek, the same cheek Adrian had assaulted, and touch it tenderly, gently, and his shoulders moved up once, as if he had just chuckled. His thin fingers lingered there, before he dropped his hand to his side and looked behind him to see her watching him.

Their eyes connected and Adrian felt her heart stop in her chest. She nodded in his direction, trying to keep her composure, though she felt that her heart was beating out of her chest. Even from their distance, she saw his cheeks heat up and he turned away quickly, embarrassed, and sped up his walk.

Adrian watched him, entranced, while an errant thought crossed her mind.

_This could be the start of something interesting._

With that thought, as well as the image of his large brown eyes, playing through her mind, she turned on a heel and walked to the girls bathroom. She could afford to be a little late, anyway.

Smirking, she walked into the bathroom.

She suddenly wanted to look very good around Ben.

And not just good.

_Damn good._


End file.
